The Banshees of Inisherin
Directed by Martin McDonagh
Written by Martin McDonagh
Produced by Graham Broadbent, Peter Czernin, Martin McDonagh
Starring
Colin Farrell as Pádraic Súilleabháin
Brendan Gleeson as Colm Doherty
Kerry Condon as Siobhán Súilleabháin
Barry Keoghan as Dominic Kearney
Pat Shortt as Jonjo Devine
Jon Kenny as Gerry
Bríd Ní Neachtain as Mrs. O’Riordan
Lasairfhíona as Female Singer
Gary Lydon as Peadar Kearney
Aaron Monaghan as Declan
Sheila Flitton as Mrs. McCormick
David Pearse as the Priest
Cinematography Ben Davis[1]
Edited by Mikkel E. G. Nielsen
Music by Carter Burwell
Production companies Film4 Productions, Blueprint Pictures, TSG Entertainment
Distributed by Searchlight Pictures
There wasn’t any doubt in my mind when I first saw the trailer for The Banshees of Inisherin a couple of months ago that I was going to see the film. Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell are two of my favorite actors, and seeing them in what were obviously Irish roles promised to be a real treat.
But I noticed that while the critics raved about the movie, they were curiously taciturn as to the actual plotline. Two friends have some sort of falling out, the end.
Rotten Tomatoes had a similar ambivalence: 97% critic approval, 78% rando approval. Often, the greater the divergence between those two ratings, the more interesting a movie is likely to be. Banshees is a very interesting movie.
Oh, I could have gone to Wikipedia to find out what the plot was, but it’s almost always more fun to find out for myself. OK, for this movie, perhaps “fun” isn’t the right word. But the author of the page had a deft non-spoiler beginning to the description:
“At the tail end of the Irish Civil War in 1923, on the fictional Irish isle of Inisherin, folk musician Colm Doherty abruptly begins ignoring his long-time friend and drinking buddy Pádraic Súilleabháin. Pádraic, though nice and well liked by the islanders, is too dull for Colm, who wishes to spend the remainder of his life composing music and doing things for which he will be remembered. Pádraic’s life is destabilized by the loss of one of his few friends; as Pádraic grows increasingly distressed at the rejection, Colm becomes more resistant to his old friend’s attempts to speak to him. Colm eventually gives Pádraic an ultimatum…”
What ensues goes well beyond the realms of normal human behavior. Colm is clearly severely depressed, to the point of psychotic and self-destructive behavior. For Pádraic, the sudden rejection by his closest and only life-long friend throws him into a crisis of identity aggravated by the decision of his sister, his surrogate life-partner and closest link to humanity, to leave the island. Both men are horrifically vulnerable.
This is an extremely dark film, and many people will find it unsettling. I did, and I just loved this movie. It isn’t for everyone, but the acting and the scenery and the writing are absolutely stellar.
Most years I see three great movies in a year. In the wake of Cyrano and Pinocchio, I’ve just seen three in a week.